"So what was your problem yesterday?"

Destiny stood facing a determined Dolton. He had approached her and right out got to the point. She knew he was serious and really wanted to know why she had been so furious when she'd ran into him. But he didn't need to know. Destiny would just add her sadness and anger toward the new cabin boy to her stack that she kept locked away from the world.

"Oh just forget it Dolton." she muttered, pulling out her cigar stick.

He looked angrier, and he raised his hands, "Seriously! I mean, you don't just run into someone angrier than all get out, and expect them to forget it!"

Destiny lit the cigarette. "Yes well I - "

"And I want to know what that was all about. Cause you acted like I'd just ripped a strip of you and told you to go die in a whole! I want to know what the shi - "

"Well you can just shut up already, Dolton!" Destiny growled. "I don't care what you thought I was doing, because you're wrong. If you didn't just go assuming what I thought, then you would have left it alone!"

Dolton's eyes darkened, "Well I could tell something was wrong, and so I felt I should talk to yo- "

"I don't need you to 'talk to me'!"

"Well sorry!"

Destiny blew out smoke and drew a quick breath back in, "Dolton, you don't always have to know everything about my life, and believe me, no matter how hard you try, you will never know me."

"Why not, Destiny?" he seemed to realize that Destiny didn't really care as much about him as he'd thought. "Why can't you just give me a chance? Huh? Why are you trying to push me away?" he took a step closer, "Destiny, I- "

"No!" Destiny nearly screamed. "I don't want to hear it!"

"Why not? Sometimes you need to listen!"

"No I don't! I never want to hear it! Never! And I don't want your stupid pity either! I want you to just get off my case and leave me alone!" Destiny fumed. Why couldn't he see that she didn't want him around right now? She didn't love him! She didn't even know what love was! For all she knew, love was a fraud, a fake, a lie. She had never seen real love last. And she didn't want to lose it again, so she thought it would be best just to keep away from it.

But Dolton didn't care, he reached out and clutched her arm. Destiny shoved her quellazaire in her pocket and grasped his hand, trying to yank it off, but the sixteen year old was much stronger. "Destiny- "

"Dolton! Let me go! Let go, let go!"

"HEY!"

They both turned. Jim was standing a few feet away, holding a pail and a rag. His blue eyes looked concerned with the situation that was taking place in front of him.

Jim swallowed against the rising lump in his throat. This guy was taller, and didn't look like a wimp, but he couldn't leave the girl in his grasp. He had no idea what was going on, but she looked very angry, and Jim could see an anxious look in the boy's face, half hidden by a threatening look as he glared at Jim.

"Let her go." he demanded, embarrassed by the crack in his voice.

The older guy snorted, "Ha! What are you going to do about it?" he mocked.

"Dolton, shut up!" Destiny hissed. She turned and looked at Jim, but didn't say anything.

"Let go of her." Jim repeated.

"Huh, as if." Dolton glanced down at the bucket and cloth in Jim's hands, who tried to hid them behind his leg. "What are you going to do? Throw the rag at me?" he taunted.

Jim looked into Destiny's eyes. Spite burned in her blue irises as she glared back at him. Was he wrong to help her? He suddenly felt like he should just leave her alone, and not do anything. He was for once trying to do something right, and she looked ready to claw his eyes out!

But he knew he couldn't leave her to this boy. This boy who looked to be in a rage. What was he so angry about? Jim shook the question from his mind. It wasn't his bisness.

"Go ahead." Dolton suggested, "See if you can hit me, cabin boy."

Jim narrowed his eyes. This guy was starting to get on his nerves, and his attempts to stay calm were growing thin. Normally, in school, he would have been fighting by now, maybe a teacher would have stopped him already.

"Well, come o - "

Gripping the bucket, Jim swung it toward Dolton, hitting him square in the face. The older kid fell backward, releasing Destiny. He lay on the deck for a while, then he stood up, holding his nose. Glaring at Jim, he sent him the 'you'll get it for this', look, before racing down to the galley to stop the bleeding.

Jim turned toward Destiny, but when she looked at him, her expression was blank.

"Uh," Jim didn't know what to say, "You're welcome."

Unexpectedly, her eyes became shadowed. "I didn't need your help." she said coolly.

Jim stared at her in shock. He'd risked getting into a fight for her! Dolton could have pounded the life out of him! And she didn't need his help?! "What? Seriously!"

Destiny glared harder at him, "I had it under control."

"Huh! You call that under control?" Jim rolled his eyes and turned around, gripping the rag tighter in rage. Suddenly, the round side of the bucket slammed into his back, and he jerked forward, then whipped around. "Hey!"

The girl smirked, "You forgot your pail, cabin boy. Oh, and... Jim," she added, holding his gaze, "Watch witch fights you pick. Some aren't worth it." she turned, and left.

Jim shook his head. Lexi was right, Destiny was different. And she did have mood swings!

"Jimbo!"

Turning again, Jim sighed and followed Silver's voice, his back becoming noticeably sore. In a way he dreaded going to see what the cyborg wanted, but in a way he wanted to find out. Silver was a slave driver, that was true, but he seemed like a good guy, and somewhere in there, Jim knew Silver was beginning to soften himself toward him. Putting Destiny and Dolton as far to the back of his mind as he could, Jim entered the room that contained the lung boat hangers.

As Silver lowered himself from the boat, Jim's smile faded. It reminded him of him. The memory unraveled in his mind once again, and Jim's heart sunk lower. But then Silver was back, waving at Jim, and motioning him into the boat.

Eyes lighting up, and smile returning, Jim jumped into the skiff, and listened as the cyborg explained the mechanics. Even before Silver had finished, Jim grabbed a hold of the steering, pressed the necessary buttons, and lurched the boat forward. This wasn't hard for Jim to learn. He'd always been good with mechanics. In fact, he'd built a solar surfer when he was eight. As they followed the commit that shot through the ethereal, Jim steered the boat into its tail, and the skiff flipped a few times, before he drove out again. Silver looked a bit sick, but he smiled when Jim looked his way, and adjusted his hat.

When they returned to the ship, Jim felt exhilaration pumping through his veins. It had felt so good to be out in the bliss, away from everything.

"Ahh Jimbo! If I could maneuver a skiff like that when I was your age, they'd be bowin' in the streets as I walked by today!" Silver exclaimed, plopping himself down heavily into the boat and pulling out a cloth to wipe his face.

"Bowin' in the streets!" Morph mimicked, transforming into his master's clone and copying his actions.

"I don't know," Jim shrugged and sat down across from the cyborg, "They weren't exactly singing my praises when I left home." he leaned forward, "But I'm gonna change all that."

Silver glanced his way, "That so, how do you know?"

"Ahh, I got some plans," Jim explained, leaning back again and placing his hands behind his head, "Gonna make people see me a little differently."

"Oh," Silver's voice held a trace of warning, but Jim didn't notice, "Sometimes, plans go astray."

"Not this time." the boy closed his eyes and smiled at himself, imagining how different things would be when he returned to Montresser.

Sighing, Silver pushed up his mechanical leg and struggled to loosen a nut. Jim opened his eyes slightly to watch the old cyborg. Morph chirped worriedly and changed into a wrench. "Oh, thank you Morphy." Silver took hold of the wrench and made the necessary changes to his leg.

Jim put his arms down again, his expression changing. And for the first time, he really wondered what had happened to Silver. Why was he as he was? So... Jim searched for the right word, metallic, was all he could come up with. "So uh, how'd that happen anyway?" he asked, nodding toward Silver's leg.

The cyborg looked down and opened and closed his metallic hand. "You give up a few things," he explained, his eyes downcast, "Chasin' a dream."

"Was it worth it?"

Silver let out a slight chuckle and switched to Jim's side of the skiff. He put his arm around the boy's shoulders and adjusted his hat. "I'm hopin' it is Jimbo. I most surly am."

Abruptly, the craft swung forward. Jim was thrown to the other side of the skiff, and Morph exploded on a beam. Silver scrambled to his feet and looked at Jim. "What the blue places..?"

Well, we all know what happens next, or do we? Mwah ha ha! I love you all! Keep writing!